Love finds a Donut
by Simplyputme123
Summary: Logan and Veronica take a trip to relax after they get some good news. The craziness that is their lives follows them of course. Starts fluffy and will get to serious parts later.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N - **Just doing some reformatting of this chapter while I update the second chapter as well.

Disclaimer: I don't own them, I really wish I did!

"I can't believe it. When we left home 2 weeks ago, I looked normal. Now look at me!" Veronica is standing in front of the bathroom mirror in the hotel suite she and Logan were staying at. Dressed in a dark blue bikini, her stomach has started to swell outwards, other than that she is as tiny as she always has been.

Logan walks to the door and leans against the wall, just admiring her as she is twisting and turning in front of the mirror. When she notices him and glares at him in the mirror he just smirks and walks up behind her wrapping his arms around her and resting his hands against the bump.

"This is all your fault! If you hadn't have been so crazy when you got home last time, then I wouldn't look like this, and my clothes would still fit!"

"If I remember correctly, you were just as crazy about having me home as I was to be home. I wasn't the only one who didn't want to leave the bedroom for that weekend. Plus, I think you look absolutely amazing and adorable. You are even more gorgeous to me now." Logan leans his head down and kisses her temple and leaves his head next to Veronica's, looking into her eyes in the mirror. "I love you, Veronica Echolls, and it only makes me love you more to know that you have our children growing inside you."

Veronica starts tearing up and brings Logan's hand up to her mouth to kiss his fingers and then hold it tight. She leans back against his bare chest and watches him rub his other hand over her stomach.

"I love you too, you know that right? I've never said it enough, but I want to make sure you know that I do. And that I am happy. It's just still a lot to take in, and I..." She takes a deep breath and just holds onto Logan.

He turns her around in his arms and holds her close to him, tilting her head up and laying a sweet kiss on her lips and then her forehead. "It's a big deal to me too, bobcat. But it's something that I've never wanted with anyone else. You and me, against the world. And now, it's you and me and these two little bugs. We are, and always will be.." "Epic." They say the last word together and Veronica lays her head on his chest and breathes out the last of her tension. They stand there just holding onto each other for a moment before her stomach starts to grumble.

"Alright, lets get you fed before the kittens start making you cranky again." Logan laughs as he steers her out of the bathroom, grabbing his shirt and a coverup for Veronica on their way out of the suite.

"Kittens? When did I get kittens?" Veronica remembers to grab the beach bag as she is whisked down the hall to the elevators. "And can we go back to that yummy little beach bar? I really liked the burger there."

"Well, you are my bobcat, so they are my kittens. It makes perfect sense. And wherever you want to eat, we can go to. Plus, then we will already be on the beach. Mind watching me surf for a while again?"

"Well, at least you let me grab my bag this time. As long as you can find me a nice comfy bit of sand that comes with an umbrella, I will be happy to watch you surf. But only until I get hungry again." Veronica tucks herself under his arm as they wait for the elevator to get all the way to the bottom floor. "Your 'kittens' demand regular meals, or else they decide that they don't want me to hold any food down at all."

"I will do my very best, for you are the very best of me."

"Awww, you're adowable." She pinches his side and runs out of the elevator as it opens to try and avoid his retaliation. Logan chases her out of the elevator, as they dodge guests in the lobby trying to get her back. Logan is the only one who can truly bring out this side of Veronica and he always enjoys it. She is the only one who he feels safe enough around for him to act like this, so it's perfect for both of them.

As Logan runs past the valet stand, he pauses to dig out his car keys and tosses them to the valet. "Can you grab my car, it's apparently time for lunch. Thanks!" He continues to chase Veronica around the lobby, although not really trying to catch her until they come up next to a big empty couch. He picks her up and they land on the couch, both of them with huge smiles and giggles erupting from Veronica.

After they had been kicked out of the first hotel on their trip for behavior like this, Logan made sure to talk to the manager and tip very well, explaining exactly the atmosphere that he wanted for his wife on this trip. Now all of the staff knew just how they were supposed to treat the Echolls and for the most part, that meant letting them have the fun they wanted and placate all of the other guests who were disturbed. For the ones who were really offended Logan have given his authorization for the hotel to charge a nice dinner and drinks to his card, without telling Veronica at all. He wanted them to have the last 2 weeks of their month long tour of Australia and New Zealand just for fun. The last few months of their lives had been full of craziness and danger, and he had finally gotten Veronica to take some time off and go away with him. Time to relax and get away from both of their lives and reconnect with each other before the biggest change in their lives to this point.

As they lay laughing on the couch, simply enjoying the company of each other, the valet walks up and stands off to the side. He clears his throat after a moment, drawing their attention to him at last. "Your car is here, Mr. Echolls. Did you need anything else?"

"Nope, Thank you very much Eddie. Here you go." Logan hands over a folded bill as he gets up and then turns around to help Veronica up and holds her hand as they walk out to the rental car. "Time to feed you and the kittens." Veronica starts laughing again, and doesn't stop even as the valet closes the car door for her. He hands Logan a bottle of water as he gets into the drivers seat. "For your Mrs. when she can finally stop laughing."

"Eddie, you get a bigger tip when we get back." Logan calls out as he puts the convertible in drive and pulls out of the driveway. "Now, my dear. Off to get us some lunch, and then some sunshine and surfing. Here's your water." He puts the bottle into the cup holder and focuses on the road. 

* * *

"Is this a good spot to sit and relax, sugarpuss?" Logan is hauling around his surfboard and a large beach umbrella while Veronica had her beach chair and the bag holding sunscreen, her books, towels, and other random beach paraphernalia.

"It looks great. Now, go impress me with your athleticism." Veronica sets up her chair under the beach umbrella and gets settled for an afternoon of reading and enjoying the sight of her husband half naked and wet. Yum. Oh right, that's how she got pregnant. Mmm, fun.

"Ok, if you need anything, just grab my attention. I'll be out there." Logan points to the water, kisses Veronica on the forehead and runs out into the ocean with his board.

Veronica finishes setting up her chair and puts on sunscreen before settling down with the first of her books, the classic What to Expect When You're Expecting. The next hour or so is filled with her taking turns between reading and watching Logan ride the waves. He seems happy, talking to some of the other surfers out there, and she is perfectly content to spend a lazy afternoon on the beach of a far away continent. One where no one is trying to abduct her, or murder her, or harm her husband in anyway. Veronica decides that it's about the perfect time to take a nap and puts down her book to recline the chair. Half an hour after she fell asleep, Logan notices that she's not watching him any more and comes out to check on her. Propping his board in the sand, he readjusts the umbrella so it shades her again. He leans down and brushes her hair off of her face. Veronica's eyes open slightly and she smiles at him and reaches out for his hand. He grabs it and places a kiss on the back of it. "Go back to sleep, love. I'll keep surfing for a bit."

"Mmm, my husband won't like you hitting on me, random dude. He's a dangerous man. Been accused of a few murders you know."

"Oh yeah? Is he in jail now?"

"Nope, I got him off of all charges. I'm a pretty awesome PI/Lawyer. You don't want to mess with us." Veronica smiles up sleepily at him, and the look in her eyes makes Logan drop to his knees beside her.

"For that smile, I'll take my chances." He whispers as he leans down and presses a kiss on her lips.

Veronica moans quietly and brings her hand up to tangle in his hair, finally growing out from his Navy haircut and holding him there to drag the kiss out. Finally he ends the kiss, leaving his forehead touching hers. "You sleep some more. I'll go back out on the water. Save up your energy for tonight. We'll go out for dinner and you can dress up all fancy. Maybe go out dancing? It will be fun." He kisses her forehead and gets back up to go surf some more.

"Sounds fun. You are pretty darn hot. Go cool off." Veronica swats his butt as he walks to grab his board and whistles at him.

"That is the reason for the kittens, bobcat." Logan runs into the water with the sound of Veronica's laughter ringing in his ears.

Unseen to either of them, a man looked up at the sound of her laughter, glanced around trying to see who was laughing, but all he could see was Logan's back as he dove under a wave and the umbrella blocking all but Veronica's legs. He shook his head, trying to get rid of a memory that he hadn't thought of in quite a few years. Then went back to watching a young girl surfing almost as well as a pro. Well, she had been surfing about since she could swim. The one thing that her namesake never showed interest in was the one thing that his daughter always wanted to do.

He goes closer to the water, walking past the umbrella on his way. He smiles as his daughter looks so happy on the water.

"Duncan?" A voice floats into his ears. On the heels of his previous memory, he just thought it was part of that, and doesn't respond. After all, he hasn't gone by that name in over 13 years and half a world away. "Duncan?" At the second repetition, he pauses. It can't be. He refuses to believe it.

"Donut? Is it really you?" Lily, his sister, not his daughter, was the one who came up with that nickname. The only other person who ever used it was his old girlfriend.

"Ve-veronica?" He can't turn around, he can't believe that she is there. And then he is being hugged as tightly as the short blonde with the amazing laugh can manage.

"Veronica?" The head nods as it is buried into his chest, trying her hardest to crush the breath from him. His arms reach up of their own accord and start hugging her back. She starts sobbing into his chest and hugging him even closer. "Please tell me I'm not dreaming, or hallucinating again. Please."

"Oh Duncan! Duncan, it's me!" She looks up at him and it's not the face of 18 year old Veronica he sees, and that is what convinces him. It's always her as he last saw her in his dreams and memories. He holds her as tight as she was holding him and starts crying as much as she was. He slowly falls down until they are both kneeling in the sand, holding each other for dear life, as if they can't believe this is actually happening.

Logan finishes a wave and looks over towards where he left Veronica. Seeing her kneeling in the sand wrapped around some guy looking like she was crying her heart out made him a touch scared. Grabbing his board, he starts walking quickly to where they were on the beach. He notices a teenage girl heading towards the same people, and the way she looks makes him do a double take, but he knows he couldn't have met this young girl anywhere.

"Hey, do you who that woman is who's hugging my dad?" She asks when she notices that Logan is heading towards the same people she is.

"Well, that's my wife. Lets go see what's going on. Who is your dad?" They both started walking a touch quicker to the two people sobbing on the beach.

"His name is Steve. Steve Campbell. Do you know him?" She asks as they come up to the crying pair.

"Veronica? Are you ok?" Logan drops his board and kneels down next to her, putting his hand on her back. Duncan looks up at his voice and Logan immediately sinks back down to the ground, his mouth dropping open in disbelief. "No. No, no, no, no..." He keeps repeating the word, like he doesn't even know what is coming out of his mouth. Because he doesn't.

Lily stands up her board and then grabs Logan's and sets that one up to. It doesn't look like anyone was hurt, and so she was just really confused as to why these people sitting in the middle of the beach looking like the world was ending. Or starting all over again. She sees the bottles of water next to the chair she assumed was the lady's and went to grab them.

Veronica looks up finally hearing Logan's muttering. "Logan. Logan." She reaches back to grab his hand. "Logan." He finally takes his eyes off of Duncan's face and looks at Veronica's. Seeing the tears run down her face hits him and he reaches up to her face, just resting his hand there.

"It's Duncan, Logan. It's really him." Logan looks back at Duncan and then grabs both of them and holds them tight. Veronica ends up mostly in the middle of the two men holding onto both of them. This lasts for a few more minutes before she starts realizing she can't breathe all that well. She tugs on the back of Duncan's shirt and tries to push against Logan's chest. "Guys, back up, let me go. I can't breathe." It takes the guys a moment to realize what she was asking, and then they both backed up as fast as they could, almost falling over in the sand. Veronica starts laughing through her tears and smiles at the two men looking like the awkward gawky teens they used to be.

"Hey Dad, are you okay?" Lilly finally saw an opening to figure out what was going on. She hands Veronica the water bottle she had been holding. "And why do they keep calling you Duncan? Isn't your name Steve?"

Veronica takes the water bottle offered and looks up at the girl for the first time. "Lily, is that you?" To Duncan, "Is this Lily?" She turns her head back to Lily. "You are even more beautiful than I imagined."

"My name is Lily. How did you know that? Dad, who are these people?" Lily goes over to where her dad was sitting in the sand. He looks up at her and grabs her hand, pulling her down into his lap.

"Lils, do you remember me telling you about the awesome guardian angel who helped me when you were a baby? And the best friend I had when I was a kid, the one whose dad was an awesome movie star?" When she nods at him, he continues. "This is them. Logan Echolls and Veronica Mars. A blast from my past that I never thought I'd ever see again." He finally had the chance to see all of Veronica and as his eyes traveled over her he noticed the flashy ring and her baby bump. "Or is it Veronica Echolls?" He said the last with a smile.

Veronica and Logan glanced at each other, and the smile that they could never hide from each other popped up for an instant. Their hands automatically found each other without looking. Logan turned back to Duncan and said "Yeah, it's Echolls now. Has been for almost 2 years now. How we got there is a story in itself."

"With us, wasn't it bound to be?" Veronica smiled. "Is it Steve now?" Veronica asked. "I'm not sure you look like a Steve." Her mouth quirked up in an assessing grin.

"Wow. Just wow. This is the last thing I ever expected to happen today. Logan and Veronica showing up on the beach. Although, I guess if I was ever going to run into Logan it would be on a beach surfing." Duncan's arms wrapped around Lily and he seemed to be talking mostly to himself.

"Dad. Hey Dad." Lily poked him in the stomach. "People are starting to look at all of us weirdly. Can we maybe look more normal before I get super embarrassed?"

This comment made all of the adults look around the beach in apprehension. The beach wasn't that crowded, but there were enough people around and they were starting to look at them.

"Yeah, we should probably go somewhere else. At least to finish the crying part of this reunion." Logan said as he stood up, holding a hand down to help Veronica up.

"How about we go back to our house? I'd like to hear more about this story." Lily looked up at her dad with her hopeful puppy dog eyes. The eyes that were so much like his dear sister's that he could never say no to them.

"And I don't want to say goodbye again just yet." Veronica used Logan's hand to pull herself up, and his arms went immediately around her, one hand resting unconsciously on the small bump where his children were. Duncan glanced at Veronica's stomach and then back up to their hopeful faces.

"Yeah, we can go back to our house. It'll be safer to talk inside." Lily bounced off of Duncan's lap at these words and bounced towards her board.

"Ok, but I'm driving with you. I don't want to lose you again so soon after finding you again." Veronica leaned down to poke Duncan in the chest.

"You don't need to drive anywhere. We walked here. You can just follow me." Lily seemed to have a mix of the personalities of her namesake and her mother. Almost like she was the best of both of them. She grabbed her board under one arm and held out her hand to Veronica. "Well, aren't you coming?" The way she said that, and the way she looked at that moment, it was if their Lily was back to life again. Veronica started crying again. "Yeah. Yeah Lily, I'm coming." As she glanced at Logan she could see tears starting to fall down his cheeks as well.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N -** Thanks everybody for the reviews, follows, and favorites. I'm happy to be able to write something that you guys are enjoying reading!

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, I just like playing with them.

The adults gather up the rest of the beach items and follow Lily. Logan keeps glancing over between Duncan and Veronica looking worried. It was a fast walk to the Campbell's home. They lived just a block and a half away from the beach.

"Wow, this is a great house. It looks just perfect for you!" Veronica was looking all around as she walked towards the front door. The house was a nice little ranch styled home, with a great porch out front. It looked like a home with the garage open and full of surfing equipment. Duncan opened the front door and held it for Veronica. As she was about to walk in she realized that Logan wasn't next to her any more. Turning around she saw him in the middle of the yard, just standing there looking more unsure than she thought she had ever seen him.

"Hey, mind giving us a minute? You won't disappear, will you?" Veronica looked directly into Duncan's eyes and held his gaze until he dropped it.

"I'll be here. I don't think Lily would let me wander off in any case." He smiled and went into the house. "I'll even leave the door open for you guys. Do you want anything to drink?"

"Water for me, I think a beer for him." Veronica turned around and walked towards Logan, tossing the words over her shoulder. As she gets to him and looks into his eyes Veronica can barely handle all of the emotion she sees there. Tears start flowing down her cheeks as she raises her hand up to his cheek, tears she doesn't even notice in the face of his pain.

"Oh, Logan." They just stand there in the middle of their old friends yard, on a continent half a world away from where they'd met, staring into each others eyes and communicating in the way only they could.

_I don't want you to leave me. You did for him once before._

_Before was different. I love you now, and I did back then too, I just didn't want to admit it._

_Are you sure you wouldn't be better off with him? He was always better than I was._

_You are the perfect one for me. You are the one I married._

_Your relation ship with him never ended. He just left. What if he wants another chance?_

Veronica brings Logan's hand to her bump under her cover up. Her other hand on his cheek starts rubbing back and forth. Never breaking their eye contact until the very last moment she kisses him. She tries to put everything she feels for him into the kiss. After a moment his arms come up to hold her closer to him, picking her up from the ground. Her arms wrap around his neck, her hands tangling in his hair. They break apart after a too short moment, breathing harder than the moment without air should account for. Logan slowly lowers Veronica back to the ground, leaving his forehead against hers and his eyes closed.

"I love you. Even without the twins, I'd still be with you. Epic, remember. You and me throughout the world." Veronica wrapped her arms around his chest, telling him with every inch of her body that she wasn't ever going to leave him.

Logan takes a deep breath and opens his eyes. "I love you too. I'm sorry."

_I always thought you were out of my league._ His eyes tell her one more thing as they stand in the yard.

_Funny, I always thought the same._

Veronica smirks and kisses his nose before twisting out of his arms and running to the door of the house. Logan breaks into a smile and picks up their beach stuff, leaving it on the porch before following her into the house.

Veronica is standing just a few steps into the house, looking at the pictures on the wall. They are of moments in Lily's life. The ones of her as a baby and a toddler, most of them just her as Duncan was obviously the one taking the pictures. When Lily was around 4, Duncan started to feature in more of the pictures, as well as a slim dark haired woman. A few steps further down the hallway, there was a wedding portrait. Lily looked like an adorable flower girl, staring happily up at her father, with her hand in the bride's hand. It was one of the most adorable pictures that Veronica thought she had ever seen. After that, there are a lot of surfing pictures of Lily, as well as happy family pictures for the next 5 or so years. Then the woman lost her hair and there were more pictures of them as a family visiting the sites. The woman then was in a wheelchair, but still smiling. Lily and Duncan were smiling as well, but you could see the sadness in them as well. The last few pictures were of Lily in what looked like surfing competitions, taken by a proud parent. Logan and Veronica reach the end of the hallway together, his arm around her shoulder and hers around his waist.

Lily was waiting for the two of them in the kitchen, putting together a plate of snacks to go with the drinks that were on the island.

"Hey, you guys made it in. Dad is out back, clearing off the table and getting the grill warmed up. What do you guys want to eat?"

"No shrimp!" Duncan yelled this through the screen door at the same time Veronica said it. Logan smiled and whispered "He remembered." His arm tightens around Veronica's shoulders for a moment. She huggs him back and leaned her head against his shoulder.

"You two are so adorable! How long have you guys been together?" Lily finishes putting a tray of snacks together and heads towards the back door. "Do you want to grab those drinks and join us out here?"

"I think that is a story your dad will want to hear as well." Veronica lets go of Logan to grab the second tray of drinks, but he bumps her out of the way and grabs it up first.

"I'll take that. You can go and sit and relax." Logan dodges a swat from her as he follows Lily out the door.

"Fine. After I find the bathroom. Lily, Dunc-Steve? Where is your toilet? Someone has cursed me with the need to go pee every 15 minutes." Veronica peers around the door to the back yard, and does her best to not stare at her husbands back side. *Another pregnancy side effect. Damn it. Oh wait, that's not just because of being pregnant. He just has a great butt.

"Take the hallway to the right, 2nd door on the right." Duncan looks back at Veronica as she pops back into the house. "She hasn't changed much, has she?"

"Yes and no. She has changed, done a 180, changed some more, and somehow ended right here." Logan places the drink tray next to the snack tray and sits across the table from Duncan. He grabs one of the open beers and drinks half of it in one go. A deep breath later, and he can look at Duncan again. "Ok, V and I have some news to update you on, as well as the whole catching up with each others lives. Have you had any news from our side of the world?"

"At the beginning I had more. I heard when your dad died. Sorry about that, by the way." Duncan looks over at Logan.

"I'm not, so you don't have to be. That was the least stressful part of that night." Logan raises his beer in a kind of salute to the ghosts of his past.

"I knew when my parents divorced and when Mrs. Manning died. I thought it might have been safe to come back or at least get in contact at that point, but I had Cassie, and then she got sick. Healthcare is cheaper out here, and I found her the best doctors I could. They did what they could, but it wasn't enough." Duncan swirls the cup of water he had picked up around, watching the ice hit the sides of the glass. After a moment of this, he looks back up and continues his story. "I knew when you were accused of murder, and then when you got off. It felt like Veronica had a hand in that, but the tabloids never mentioned her. After that, I haven't heard anything. The one person who used to update me hasn't called in over a year."

"Clarence had a stroke 18 months ago. He's still alive, but he can't really take care of himself or remember anything that happened after Lily died actually." Veronica sits down next to Logan. She had changed in the washroom into a simple sundress. Not a yellow cotton one, but a light blue gauzy one that still hid her baby bump. "I'm guessing that is who your contact was. He always could keep a secret. And he still has an awesome poker face."

"Yeah, he was the only one who knew where I was. How did you guess?"

Veronica tilts her head to the side and just looks at Duncan before grabbing a glass of water and sipping at it.

"Right, you're Veronica Mars. Enough said." Duncan laughs quickly and glances back to his hands holding his glass. Logan grins at that and holds up his bottle to tap it against Veronica's cup. She smirks and nods her head, accepting the comment as the praise it was meant for.

"Well then, probably the most important thing you should know that has happened is that Mr. Manning died. After that, Lizzie and Grace came out and told the FBI about how their parents treated them. Lizzie would have gotten custody of the baby, but she insisted that you always should have had custody. You are Lily's dad after all. With their testimonies and the lawyer and money your parents threw at the FBI, they cleared you of all charges. The only thing your parents have agreed on since you left is that they want you back. You can come home, Duncan. As a free man." Veronica stares into Duncan's face the whole time she is telling him this, keeping eye contact and refusing to let him ignore what she is saying. "You can go home today, and the only thing the FBI want with you is to apologize and welcome you home." Veronica moves over a chair and grabs onto Duncan's hand. She holds it tightly and just sits waiting for his response. He just sits there and stares at her for a long moment, then breathes deeply and starts to sob again. Veronica gathers him into her arms and rubs his back while he cries on her shoulder. Lily comes back outside and sees her dad sobbing in the arms of this tiny blonde woman again while Logan looks on. He looks up at her and gets up to usher her back into the house.

"Let's give your dad a couple minutes. Where does he keep the hard liquor? He might need some. I know I do."

"Dad hides it. He thinks I might get into it and cause trouble. I just think it tastes gross and I don't understand how anyone can stand to drink it. But it's this way." Lily leads Logan into an office, two walls filled with books and cabinets, the third wall having a desk in front of it facing the fourth wall made entirely of windows. It looked out onto some dunes behind which the ocean was. Lily rummages around in one of the desk drawers looking for a key as Logan stands in front of the windowed wall. She finally finds the key and walks up to one of the cabinets and unlocks it. "Ok, which one did you want to get out? I think this is the one he normally goes for." She pulls out a half full bottle of single malt scotch.

"That will do perfectly. Now back to the kitchen." He snags two of the crystal cut glasses and starts to follow her, the changes his mind and grabs a third glass. Once in the kitchen, Lily tosses a few ice cubes into the glasses, looking a bit confused as to why there were three of them. Logan pours the scotch into the first glass, and raises it to his nose, smelling it before taking a taste.

"Lets give them a couple more minutes while we rummage around in here and see what I can't whip up for V to eat. She will probably be getting hungry soon and if I don't feed her on time, she still gets morning sickness."

Lily looks relieved at having a task that she can actually do. She turns around and starts to pull things out of the pantry while Logan looks around the fridge.

* * *

Veronica just sits and hold Duncan while he cries, watching Logan walk inside. Duncan's arms just wrap around her like she might disappear at any moment. She rubs his back, holding him just as tight. As she does this, she can feel herself start to cry as well. "Damn hormones." she whispers as her tears fall onto Duncan's shoulder. He looks up at this and meets her eyes and gives her a half laugh.

"I've missed a lot haven't I?"

"Oh, just a few murders, some mysterious deaths, class warfare, drug dealers. Epic love and crazy fun. Nope, not a thing. Haven't missed anything." Veronica laughs and then starts crying even harder. Duncan now holds her as she cries until she starts hiccuping. She sits back in her chair and tries to stop the hiccups.

"Breathe. Here try this." Duncan hands her the glass of water and watches as she tries to swallow it and catch her breath.

"Thanks. I was supposed to be the one comforting you with that news. I seem to tear up at the drop of a hat lately. It kind of drives me nuts." Once her hiccups stop, she smiles up at him, a sad yet hopeful smile. One that makes him think of how she used to look back before he left. "How are you doing with this news?"

Duncan takes a moment to think before he answers. "I'm still not sure that I'm not dreaming. Or imagining this whole thing. I mean, I've wanted to hear this kind of news since about 2 days after I left. You being pregnant and married to Logan Echolls is about the only thing that never featured in my thoughts of this moment. So that makes me think that this is really happening." He gives her a wry grin. "I'll need the story of that at some point." This brings a real smile to her face.

"It's a long one, but I'll be happy to spend the time telling you. We have the time now."

Logan and Lily come out to the back yard, Logan carrying a tray of sandwiches and some bags of chips while Lily had another tray with the scotch and glasses on it as well as a fresh pitcher of water. Logan puts down his tray and reaches into his pocket and pulls out a cell phone.

"Bobcat, Mac called. I didn't tell her what was up, but she said she really needed to talk to you. It apparently is level 1 clearance required, and I am only level 3 now. I thought I was at least at level 2 by now, but she insisted that she needed to talk to you ASAP." He hands over the phone. Veronica looks over at Duncan and grabs it.

"Is there a room where I can go to make a call? Mac doesn't say that unless it is super important." Veronica stands up and gets ready to go inside.

"You can use my office. It has a great view. Same hallway as before, door at the end." Duncan looks at the scotch, thinking about pouring himself a drink.

"Here, take this." Logan holds up a plate with a sandwich and some chips. "Eat before you get sick." Once she takes the plate he goes ahead and pours Duncan a glass of the scotch then himself another one, and after thinking a moment, and looking from Lily to Duncan and back, her pours a very small amount into the third glass. He caps the scotch and hands Duncan his and Lily the glass with the taste of scotch. "You might need that."

To Lily's surprise, her dad doesn't object, just raises his glass in a toast. Without saying anything Logan raises his as well. They both look to her, waiting for her choice. She lifts up her glass as well.

"To the moments we missed, and the friends we have lost." Duncan starts the toast.

"To the friends we've found and the memories we will make." Lily might not have her dad's taste in alcohol yet, but she certainly had his flair for making the toasts.

"Oh hell." Logan looked at the two of them and his glass. "To way back when and to here and now. The future holds us all." They all tossed back their glasses at the same time and swallowed the amber liquid inside. Lily's face immediately turned red and she started coughing. Duncan and Logan laugh as Duncan reaches over to pat her on the back as her coughing spasm finishes.

* * *

Veronica sets her snack on the desk, looking around at Duncan's office. She isn't consciously snooping, but she is who she is. Eating half her sandwich, she browses the book titles, then remembers why she came here in the first place. She picks up her phone again and hits the button to call Mac. It rings a few times before she picks up.

"Hello?" Mac sounds frustrated, but not horribly upset, which relieves Veronica's mind a touch.

"Hey Q. Logan said it was a level 1 situation, but I think I may have you beat here." She grabs a sip of her water while Mac responds.

"I don't think anything in this world could beat mine, but you get one sentence to convince me, Bond."

"Ok, for my one sentence, I will tell you that I am making this phone call from Duncan Kane's home office while he is sitting on his back patio, getting force fed liquor by my husband after I told him he was a free man." Veronica sits in Duncan's chair and uses her left foot to start it spinning in lazy circles. "How is that for a sentence?" She waits for a moment but doesn't hear anything from the other end of the line. "Mac, are you still there?" She pulls the phone away from her ear to check her signal.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm here. Give me a second." Veronica stops spinning and examines one of the chips on her plate while she waits. After poking it and smelling it, (Barbeque flavored she thinks) she pushes it and the rest of the plate away making a face like she thinks something died on it. "Okay, I think I've processed it now. My brain was just in a way different place. You guys found Duncan? Where? How?"

"Well, we were on the beach and Logan was surfing. Duncan's daughter Lily apparently surfs too, and he walked past where I was sitting in the sand. I called out his name and he turned around. Only us, right?"

"Wow. Only you guys could stumble across the man that the FBI has been chasing across the worl for 13 years."

"Yup, I'm awesome like that. Do you think you would be able to get a hold of Jake and Celeste if Duncan wants to talk to them? I don't want to tell them that he is here unless he wants to talk to them."

"Easy as pie, Veronica. I could have them both on the phone, if not on a plane within the hour you tell me to go." Veronica smiles as she starts spinning the chair around again.

"Did I win?"

Mac laughs and responds. "You sat on a beach and found a kidnapper on the run for 13 years while ogling your husband's half naked wet body while he surfed. Yeah, I think you won for today." Veronica grins and laughs as well.

"So what was your reason for calling in the first place? Logan is upset that his clearance has been downgraded by the way."

"Well, he asked me to marry him." Veronica put her foot down, stopping her chair immediately.

"What?! Logan asked you to marry him? That dog!"

"No, Logan didn't ask me that." Veronica waits for the next sentence, but Mac doesn't seem to be willing to say anything more at the moment.

"Ok, so who asked you to marry him? I didn't think you were dating anyone?"

"I'm not. Or at least I didn't think I was. I'm all confused and discombobulated now and I don't know what is happening in my life any more." Veronica could hear Mac on the edge of tears through the phone.

"Ok Q, breathe and calm down for a second. Then start at the beginning and tell me who asked you to marry him in such a way that you are actually considering it. And before you tell me you aren't, I know you. If you weren't, you would laugh it off and would not be freaking out over the phone to me while I'm half a world away." After listening to her breathe for a moment, Veronica continues. "A name please?"

"Dick. Dick Casablancas asked me, Cindy Mackenzie to marry him." Through the phone Veronica can hear as Mac starts crying. Veronica takes a deep breath to try to prevent her tears from starting up again.

"Ok, breathe and start from the beginning. Pretend I have no idea what is going on and tell me what happened."

**A/N 2 -** Now I just need to decide if I want the next chapter to be Mac's story or if I want to just have them recap it and make her story a whole different story on here instead of just a chapter. Thanks for reading!


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